A request by Energy Transfer Partners (NYSE:ETP) to quickly force the U.S. government to approve the final link in its Dakota Access pipeline is denied by a federal judge.

The judge says he will take up the issue next year, and ordered lawyers for ETP and the Justice Department to file motions by Jan. 31.

After the Obama administration this week denied a permit to finish the pipeline's final stage, ETP asked the court for immediate approval, arguing the Army Corps of Engineers already had approved the crossing.

The litigation could be rendered moot when Pres.-elect Trump takes office next month, as he has voiced support for the project.

Energy Transfer Partners (NYSE:ETP) is continuing to pursue a court challenge to force the Obama administration to approve completion of the Dakota Access pipeline instead of waiting for Pres.-elect Trump to take office next month.

ETP's lawyers asked the U.S. District Court in D.C. for an expedited ruling late Monday that would allow the company to complete the project, and a hearing in the case is scheduled for Friday morning.

ETP argued that the Army Corps of Engineers already had approved completion of the pipeline via a crossing underneath the Missouri River, and that the final easement is merely a perfunctory "ministerial" document, adding that the delays amount to political interference and are not supported by the law.

The delays already have cost ETP $450M, according to court papers, and ETP has said continued delays cost ~$83M/month.

A crude oil transmission line operated by Belle Fourche Pipeline Co. has been shut down in western North Dakota following a leak that spilled oil into a creek, a development that could harden the views of Native Americans, climate activists and other protesters camped ~200 miles away at the Dakota Access pipeline project worried that a leak there could contaminate the water supply.

Many of the demonstrators say they are planning to stay at the Dakota Access site, despite a recent win against the building of the pipeline, the wishes of the chairman of the tribe that has led the protest and blizzard conditions.

Meanwhile, the American Petroleum Institute and the MAIN Coalition, which represents entities that benefit from Midwest infrastructure projects, are calling on Pres.-elect Trump to pave the way for completion of the pipeline when he enters the White House.

Pres.-elect Trump supports completion of the Dakota Access pipeline, a Trump spokesperson says, a day after the Obama administration denied a permit needed to finish the project.

Pipeline experts say Trump has several options once he takes office to enable the pipeline to proceed, including directing the Secretary of the Army to reinstate a previous permit for the reservoir crossing or issuing an executive order approving the pipeline: the Republican-led Congress, which reconvenes more than two weeks before the inauguration, also could get involved.

But nearly any outcome delays completion until mid 2017, and ETP has said it expects to lose nearly $84M each month the pipeline is delayed, and that losing shippers could result in its cancellation.

"We know one thing for sure: When the administration changes, the easement is going to be approved," the senator says, referring to the legal right pipeline proponents are claiming to justify construction on Native American land.

Heitkamp, who once was director of a Dakota Gasification plant, the only commercial scale synthetic natural gas producing company in the U.S., has met with Pres.-elect Trump and could be in the mix for the Department of Enegy cabinet position.

Other North Dakota leaders have criticized the government's decision, with Gov. Dalrymple calling it a "serious mistake," and U.S. Rep. Cramer says it sends a "very chilling signal" for the future of U.S. infrastructure.

Energy Transfer Partners (ETP-3.4%) and Sunoco Logistics Partners (SXL-3.5%) open lower after the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers refused a crucial permit needed for completion of their $3.7B Dakota Access pipeline project, which said the companies would need to consider alternative routes other than passing under Lake Oahe; also ETE-1.8%.

In an angry statement, the companies say the decision is "a purely political action... the latest in a series of overt and transparent political actions by an administration which has abandoned the rule of law in favor of currying favor with a narrow and extreme political constituency."

Analysts generally agree that a Trump administration eventually will approve the project but warn that investors should be aware of headline pressure on Dakota names including EOG Resources (EOG+1.8%), Marathon Oil (MRO+2.2%), Whiting Petroleum (WLL+2.4%), Continental Resources (CLR+1%) and Hess (HES+3.5%).

Crude oil continues to slide - WTI now -3.8% at $45.27/bbl, and Brent -3.8% at $46.40/bbl - dragging oil and gas equities (XLE-2.1%) down with it.

Iran's oil minister says he is not prepared to reduce supply, and Saudi Arabia says it would not participate in a production deal without Iran and Iraq.

Reuters reports that Iran has written to OPEC saying Saudi Arabia needs to cut oil output to 9.5M bbl/day; Saudi has said it was prepared to reduce its production only by 500K bbl/day from current levels of 10.5M.

The order, which Standing Rock Sioux Chairman Dave Archambault calls a "menacing action meant to cause fear," comes days after the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which manages the site, set a Dec. 5 deadline for the demonstrators to vacate their encampment.

The National Weather Service has posted a storm warning for most of western and central North Dakota, forecasting the possibility of heavy snow through Wednesday.

Dakota Access pipeline protesters say they will not leave the area where hundreds have camped for months, despite a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers directive that all federal lands north of the Cannonball River will be closed to public access Dec. 5 for "safety concerns."

Several hundred protestors on Corps land in southern North Dakota have erected semi-permanent structures or brought motor homes and trailers in advance of the harsh winter; the Corps has said it would not evict the encampment, and Standing Rock Sioux tribal leader Dave Archambault says he does not believe the Corps would forcibly evict anyone.

It's the federal government's job to peacefully close the camp because it allowed people to stay there in the first place, North Dakota Gov. Dalrymple says.

Stifel downgrades ETP to Hold from Buy with a $37 price target, trimmed from $48, as the firm sees little upside at current valuations given that units now effectively track movements in the price of SXL, which the firm reiterates at Hold with a $24 target, cut from $29.

Tudor Pickering says it would be buyers of SXL “despite investor fears of a forced SXL takeout bid materializing,” and adds that the deal cuts yield for ETP unitholders in exchange for no premium takeout, while SXL owners “have their asset base diluted to shore up ETP’s unsustainable payout."

Authorities are defending their decision to douse protesters with water during sub-freezing weather last night near the Dakota Access oil pipeline, and say they will not rule out doing it again if some of the protesters continue to throw objects including rocks, asphalt and water bottles at law enforcement officers.

Protest organizers say at least 17 protesters were taken to the hospital, including some who were treated for hypothermia.

Protesters massed against police today at a bridge near the protesters' main camp, but turned back at the request of Standing Rock Sioux elders after reports of firearms in the crowd.

Both Sunoco Logistics Partners (SXL-7.8%) and Energy Transfer Partners (ETP-7.9%) trade sharply lower on news of the plan for the much smaller SXL to purchase ETP that will result in a net implicit reduction in distribution yield for ETP unitholders.

ETP investors will receive 1.5 units of SXL for each unit of ETP they own but their payouts will be reduced since SXL has a much lower dividend yield; CreditSights says the merger amounts to a “stealth distribution cut” that reduces the ETP cash payout by 29%.

Bernstein Research notes CEO Kelcy Warren chose a path that protects Energy Transfer Equity (ETE+2.8%), the entity in the group of companies in which he holds more than 10% of shares outstanding.

But analysts generally are pleased that the deal - if it is approved by unitholders - will simplify ETE's complex structure, which also includes Sunoco LP (SUN-3.6%) and PennTex Midstream Partners (PTXP+0.8%); Baird analyst Ethan Bellamy calls the deal "a major step in untangling... the most complex web of publicly traded partnerships."

Seaport Global's Sunil Sibal calculates that the deal will lead to a distribution reduction of ~$1.22 per ETP unit, or $650M, but could turn out well in the long run, lowering the cost of capital through the Energy Transfer complex and positioning it for acquisitions as the industry continues to consolidate.